Dynamic memory with sustainable storage architecture

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to DRAM with sustainable storage architecture. The DRAM comprises a DRAM cell with an access transistor and a storage capacitor, and a word-line coupled to a gate terminal of the access transistor. During the period between the word-line being selected to turn on the access transistor and the word line being unselected to turn off the access transistor, either a first voltage level or a second voltage level is stored in the DRAM cell, wherein the first voltage level is higher than a voltage level of a signal ONE utilized in the DRAM, and the second voltage level is lower than a voltage level of a signal ZERO utilized in the DRAM.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.62/777,727, filed on Dec. 10, 2018 and entitled “Novel ON-OFF Designs ofthe Access Transistor in an DRAM's Cell”, the contents of which areincorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to dynamic memory, especially to dynamicmemory with sustainable storage architecture.

2. Description of the Prior Art

The most widely used DRAM cell has one access transistor which has itssource connected to the storage capacitor and its drain connected to thebit-line. The bit-line is connected to the first-stage cross-coupledsense amplifier which transfer signals to be READ out from thecell-array through the column switches to a second-stage sense amplifierwhich is connected to the I/O lines (also known as Data lines). DuringWRITE operation the signals driven by I/O buffers to be stabilized onthe Data lines which further stabilize the data over the first-stagesense amplifier to make the right signals written into the storagecapacitor through the access transistor. The access transistor isresponsible for READ operation or WRITE operation of the correct datainto the storage capacitor during active mode (that is, the accesstransistor is ON) but also avoids the stored signal loss when the accesstransistor is during the inactive mode (that is, the access transistoris OFF).

The access transistor is designed to have a high threshold voltage tominimize the leakage current through the transistor. But the shortcomingresult is that the access transistor loses its performance when it isturned ON. As a result, the word-line needs to be bootstrapped orconnected to a high VPP (usually from a word-line voltage source) toallow the access transistor to have high drivability for WRITE ofsignals into the storage capacitor. Such a high VPP is passed through aword-line driver to be loaded onto the word-line or the gate of theaccess transistor. Since the VPP is a high voltage stress over theaccess transistor, the dielectric material of the transistor (forexample, an oxide layer or a High-K material) must be designed to bethicker than that used for transistors used in other support circuits orperipheral circuits of DRAM (such as command decoder, address decoder,and other I/O circuits, etc.) Therefore, the design of the accesstransistor faces a challenge of maintaining either high performance orhigh reliability, and presents a difficult trade-off between reliabilityand performance. The widely used access transistor design is morefocused on accomplishing high reliability but must sacrifice theperformance of the access transistor.

In a brief summary, regarding the conventional access transistor design,it has a high threshold voltage to reduce the leakage current to helplong retention time of retaining charges in the storage capacitor, athick gate dielectric material to sustain the high word-line voltagelike VPP, and sacrifices the performance of the access transistor. As aresult, WRITE or READ of the signal ONE which is usually referred to aVCC level takes longer times or cannot completely restore the signalONE. That is, the WRITE time is longer to satisfy the full-signal VCC tobe completely written into the storage capacitor.

The commonly used design of the DRAM cell could be illustrated in FIG.1A. The DRAM cell includes an access transistor 11 and a capacitor 12.The gate of the access transistor 11 is coupled to a word-line (WL) andthe cross-coupled sense amplifier 20 is coupled to the access transistor11 through the bit-line (BL). The DRAM cell uses the access transistor11 as a switch to control the charges to be stored from the bit-line(BL) into the capacitor in WRITE mode or to be transferred out tobit-line in READ mode, where multiple DRAM cells are connected to thebit-line, respectively. In this example, there are signals ONE (supposedas 1.2 V, and the signal ONE is usually the level voltage of VCCSAprovided from the cross-coupled sense amplifier 20) and ZERO (supposedas 0V, and the signal ZERO is usually the level voltage of VSS providedfrom the cross-coupled sense amplifier 20) latched by a cross-coupledsense amplifier in READ mode by amplifying the signals transferred outby the cell signals on bit-lines, or these signals ONE and ZERO arewritten from the external to twist the sense amplifier for storing theright signals to the cells in WRITE mode.

FIG. 1B shows the related signal waveforms during access (READ or WRITE)operations of most current DRAMs. To give an example, a 25-nanometerDRAM cell has commonly the following parameters related to (surroundedwith) the array design: the bit-line ONE voltage 1.2V, the word-line ONhas the VPP up to 2.7V and the word-line OFF has the voltage about−0.3V, the threshold voltage of the cell is ranged around 0.7 to 0.9 V,the access transistor's dielectric must sustain the field strength under2.7 V (under burn-in stress this number goes up to 3.4V for anacceptable reliability margin), and the Word-line driver device mustalso use the thick gate dielectric so that the performance must besacrificed.

As shown in FIG. 1B, in the beginning, the storage capacitor of the DRAMis in the standby or inactive mode (that is, the access transistor isOFF), the voltage level of the word-line coupled to the gate of theaccess transistor is a standby negative voltage (−0.3V). The bit-lineand bit-line bar are equalized at a voltage level of half-VCCSA betweenthe ONE level at VCCSA=1.2V and the ZERO level of 0 V. When the storagecapacitor enters the active mode (that is, the access transistor is ON),the voltage level of the word-line is raised from a standby negativevoltage (−0.3V) and pulled up to a high level VPP (such as 2.7 V) whichis much higher than the VCCSA (1.2 V) plus the threshold voltage VT ofthe access transistor (could be 0.7 or 0.8V) to provide sufficientlylarge drive over the access transistor's Gate-to-Source voltage (e.g.2.7 V−1.2 V−0.8 V=0.7 V). The bit-line is coupled to the storagecapacitor. The word-line is continuously ON at such a high voltage VPPfor access operation (such as READ or WRITE). A RESTORE phase isproceeded following the access operation. During the RESTORE phase, thecross-coupled sense amplifier will recharge the storage capacitor basedon the signal ONE or ZERO in the storage capacitor. After the RESTOREphase, the word-line is pulled down from VPP to the voltage of word-lineat standby mode (−0.3 V) and the access transistor is in the inactivemode.

This high VPP voltage stress causes the access transistor to be designedwith a thicker gate-oxide or gate-insulator than that used for thetransistors in peripheral circuits, which degrades the access transistorperformances such as the worse short-channel effects, the ON-OFF ratioof the transistor currents, and the swing slopes, etc. Moreover,although the threshold voltage is designed to be higher than that usedin the transistors of peripheral circuits, the leakage current throughthe access transistor during the standby mode or inactive mode is stillhigh to degrade the amount of stored charges for sensing. When the VCCSAis lower (such as 0.6V) in 12 nm or 7 nm FinFET process, the leakageproblem in the standby mode or inactive mode will be worse.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the present invention is to introduce DRAM with sustainablestorage architecture. According to an aspect of the invention, the DRAMcomprises a first sustaining voltage generator producing a first voltagelevel which is higher than a voltage level of a signal ONE utilized inthe DRAM. The DRAM also comprises a DRAM cell comprising an accesstransistor and a storage capacitor, wherein the first voltage level ofthe first sustaining voltage generator is stored in the DRAM cell beforethe access transistor of the DRAM cell is turned off.

According to one aspect of the invention, the DRAM further comprises aword-line coupled to a gate terminal of the access transistor, whereinthe word-line is selected to turn on the access transistor for a firstperiod and a second period after the first period, and the first voltagelevel of the first sustaining voltage generator is stored in the DRAMcell during the second period. The DRAM cell is accessible during thefirst period. The DRAM further comprises a sense amplifier electricallycoupled to the DRAM cell through a bit line, wherein the firstsustaining voltage generator is connected to the sense amplifier duringthe second period, and the first voltage level of the first sustainingvoltage generator is supplied to the DRAM cell through the senseamplifier and the bit line. Moreover, a voltage source is connected tothe sense amplifier during the first period and disconnected with thesense amplifier during the second period, wherein the voltage level ofthe voltage source is equal to the voltage level of the signal ONE.

Another object of the invention is to provide a DRAM chip withsustainable storage architecture. The DRAM comprises a DRAM cell and asense amplifier electrically coupled to the DRAM cell through a bitline. The DRAM cell comprises an access transistor and a capacitor. Afirst sustaining voltage generator and/or a second sustaining voltagegenerator is selectively coupled to the sense amplifier, wherein thefirst sustaining voltage generator produces a first voltage level whichis higher than a voltage level of a signal ONE utilized in the DRAMchip, and the second sustaining voltage generator produces a secondvoltage level which is lower than a voltage level of a signal ZEROutilized in the DRAM chip. The first voltage level or the second voltagelevel is stored in the DRAM cell before the access transistor of theDRAM cell is turned off.

According to one aspect of the invention, the DRAM further comprises aword-line coupled to a gate terminal of the access transistor, whereinthe word-line is selected to turn on the access transistor for a firstperiod and a second period after the first period, and the first voltagelevel or the second voltage level is stored in the DRAM cell during thesecond period. The DRAM cell is accessible during the first period. Thesecond sustaining voltage generator is connected to the sense amplifierduring the second period, and the second voltage level of the secondsustaining voltage generator is supplied to the DRAM cell through thesense amplifier and the bit line. Moreover, a voltage source isconnected to the sense amplifier during the first period anddisconnected with the sense amplifier during the second period, whereinthe voltage level of the voltage source is equal to the voltage level ofthe signal ZERO.

It may be that one object of the invention is to provide a DRAM withsustainable storage architecture. According to an aspect of theinvention, the DRAM comprises a DRAM cell with an access transistor anda storage capacitor, and a word line coupled to a gate terminal of theaccess transistor. During the period between the word-line beingselected to turn on the access transistor and the word-line beingunselected to turn off the access transistor, either a first voltagelevel or a second voltage level is stored in the DRAM cell, wherein thefirst voltage level is higher than a voltage level of a signal ONEutilized in the DRAM, and the second voltage level is lower than avoltage level of a signal ZERO utilized in the DRAM. Furthermore,according to an aspect of the invention, the DRAM further comprises asense amplifier electrically coupled to the DRAM cell, wherein a firstsustaining voltage generator producing the first voltage level and asecond sustaining voltage generator producing the second voltage levelare selectively coupled to the sense amplifier.

It may be that one object of the invention is to provide a DRAM chipwith sustainable storage. According to an aspect of the invention, theDRAM chip comprises a first group of DRAM cells and a second group ofDRAM cells, with each DRAM cell comprising an access transistor and astorage capacitor. The DRAM chip also comprises a first word-linecoupled to a gate terminal of the access transistor of each DRAM cell inthe first group of DRAM cells, and a second word-line coupled to a gateterminal of the access transistor of each DRAM cell in the second groupof DRAM cells. During the period between the first word-line beingselected to turn on the access transistor of each DRAM cell in the firstgroup DRAM cells and the first word line being unselected to turn offthe access transistor of each DRAM cell in the first group DRAM cells,each DRAM cell of the first group DRAM cells is supplied with either afirst voltage level or a second voltage level, wherein the first voltagelevel is higher than a voltage level of a signal ONE utilized in theDRAM chip, and the second voltage level is lower than a voltage level ofa signal ZERO utilized in the DRAM chip.

According to another aspect of the invention, the DRAM chip furthercomprises a first group of sense amplifiers electrically coupled to thefirst group of DRAM cells, wherein the first voltage level or the secondvoltage level is supplied to each DRAM cell of the first group of DRAMcells through the first group of sense amplifiers. Moreover, the DRAMchip further comprises a second group of sense amplifiers electricallycoupled to the second group of DRAM cells, and when the first word-lineis selected, the second word-line is unselected and the second group ofsense amplifiers are coupled to a first voltage source and a secondvoltage source, and the voltage level of the first voltage source isequal to that of the signal ONE and the voltage level of the secondvoltage source is equal to that of the signal ZERO.

These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt becomeobvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading thefollowing detailed description of the preferred embodiment that isillustrated in the various figures and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A illustrates commonly used design of the DRAM cell.

FIG. 1B illustrates the related signal waveforms during access (READ orWRITE) operation of most current DRAMs.

FIG. 2 illustrates the related signal waveforms during access (READ orWRITE) operation of the DRAM cell according to one embodiment of thisinvention.

FIG. 3A shows a schematic circuit for the sense amplifier selectivelycoupled to a first sustaining voltage source which is higher than VCCSA.

FIG. 3B shows a schematic circuit for the sense amplifier selectivelycoupled to a second sustaining voltage source which is lower than VSS.

FIG. 4 illustrates the related signal waveforms of the DRAM cellaccording to another embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 5 shows the functional block diagrams of one embodiment of thisinvention regarding precharge operation.

FIG. 6 illustrates the operation of the sense amplifiers for theprecharge operation according to this invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A detailed description of the hereinafter described embodiments of thedisclosed apparatus and method are presented herein by way ofexemplification and not limitation with reference to the figures.Although certain embodiments are shown and described in detail, itshould be understood that various changes and modifications may be madewithout departing from the scope of the appended claims. The scope ofthe present invention will in no way be limited to the number ofconstituting components, the materials thereof, the shapes thereof, therelative arrangement thereof, etc., and are disclosed simply as anexample of embodiments of the present invention.

This invention is to disclose DRAM with sustainable storagearchitecture, in which a sustaining voltage source is electricallycoupled to the storage capacitor of the DRAM cell before the turn off ofthe access transistor, and the voltage level of the sustaining voltagesource is higher than that of the regular signal ONE; or the voltagelevel of the sustaining voltage source is lower than that of the regularsignal ZERO. DRAM operations (such as auto-precharge operation, RESTOREphase, refresh phase, and precharge phase) will make the selected DRAMcell to turn on the access transistor thereof. Thus, by coupling theaforesaid sustaining voltage source to the storage capacitor of the DRAMcell during the turn on stage of the access transistor, the storagecapacitor can sustain for a longer period compared with conventionalDRAM structure after the turn off stage of the access transistor, evenif there is leakage current through the access transistor.

Example 1

FIG. 2 illustrates the related signal waveforms for access (READ orWRITE) operation of the DRAM cell according to one embodiment of thisinvention. By starting from the standby mode of the DRAM, the word-lineWL is biased at −0.3 V in order to fully turn off the access transistor11. In this embodiment, the VCCSA is set to 1.2V and VSS is set to 0V.The level of signal ONE is 1.2V and the level of signal ZERO is 0 V(GND) in this example. The bit-lines (BL and BLB) are equalized at avoltage level of 0.6V between the signal ONE level at VCCSA=1.2V and thesignal ZERO level at VSS=0V.

At T0, the word-line voltage is ramping up from −0.3 V to 2.7 V which ismuch higher than the VCCSSA of 1.2 V and the access transistor'sthreshold voltage of 0.8 V to give enough driving for the turned-onaccess transistor 11 to transfer either the signal ONE or ZERO to thebit-lines. Until the signal is developed to a certain magnitude thesense amplifier 20 is activated to amplify the signal across thebit-line (BL) and bit-line bar (BLB). After T1, either READ operation(by amplifying the signals transferred out by the cell signals onbit-lines) or WRITE operation (these signals ONE and ZERO are writtenfrom the external to twist the sense amplifier 20 for storing the rightsignals to the DRAM cell) can be performed. Of course, besides READ orWRITE, other DRAM operations may be performed after T1. That is, theDRAM cell is accessible during the period between T1 and T2.

After T2 during the RESTORE phase, the dielectric of the accesstransistor 11 is still loaded by VPP from word-line (WL) for areasonably short time of restore. A first sustaining voltage source isintentionally coupled to the capacitor of the DRAM cell during thisRESTORE phase. The voltage level of the first sustaining voltage sourceis higher than VCCSA of 1.2V (or the voltage level of signal ONE). Thiscould be done by connecting or coupling the first sustaining voltagesource (VCCSA+M1) to the sense amplifier 20 (such as, by turning on theswitch 13), as shown in FIG. 3A which illustrates a schematic circuit ofthe sense amplifier 20 selectively coupled to the first sustainingvoltage source. During this RESTORE phase, the original VCCSA voltagesource is disconnected from the sense amplifier (such as, by turning offthe switch 14), and the first sustaining voltage source (VCCSA+M1) willbe connected to the sense amplifier 20, as shown in FIG. 3A. M1 could bea positive number such that the first sustaining voltage source(VCCSA+M1) is higher than VCCSA. In one example, M1 could be in therange of ⅓ VCCSA to ⅔ VCCSA, such as 0.6V. For example, when the signalONE is originally in the storage capacitor, during this RESTORE phase, avoltage level of 1.2V+0.6V from the first sustaining voltage source isthen supplied to the storage capacitor 12 through the sense amplifier20. That is, before the turn off of the access transistor 11 at T3 (thatis, the word-line WL is pulled down from VPP of 2.7V to the voltage ofword-line at standby mode of −0.3V) in FIG. 2, the storage capacitor 12is supplied with the voltage level of the first sustaining voltagesource which is higher than that of the regular signal ONE (VCCSA).Thus, after the turn off of the access transistor 11, the storagecapacitor 12 can sustain for a longer period compared with conventionalDRAM structure even there is leakage current through the accesstransistor 11. In one embodiment, after the turn off of the accesstransistor 11 or after the RESTORE phase, the first sustaining voltagesource (VCCSA+M1) could be disconnected from the sense amplifier 20.Additionally, the bit-line (BL) could be coupled to a bit-line voltagesource with a voltage level of Vbl, such that the voltage level of thebit-line (BL) will be reset to Vbl, as shown in FIG. 2.

In another embodiment, after T2 during the RESTORE phase, a secondsustaining voltage source is intentionally coupled to the capacitor ofthe DRAM cell during RESTORE phase. The voltage level of the secondsustaining voltage source is lower than voltage source VSS (0V or thevoltage level of signal ZERO). This could be done by connecting thesecond sustaining voltage source (VSS-M2) to the sense amplifier (suchas, by turning on the switch 23), as shown in FIG. 3B. FIG. 3Billustrates a schematic circuit of the sense amplifier selectivelycoupled to a second sustaining voltage source (VSS-M2) which is lowerthan VSS, wherein M2 could be a positive number. In one example, M2could be in the range of 0.4V˜0.8V, such as 0.6V. Of course, when thesecond sustaining voltage source is coupled to the sense amplifier 20during the RESTORE phase, the voltage source VSS is disconnected fromthe sense amplifier 20 (such as, by turning off the switch 24). When thesignal ZERO is originally in the storage capacitor 12, during thisRESTORE phase, a voltage level of −0.6V is then supplied to the storagecapacitor. That is, before the turn off of the access transistor 11 atT3 (that is, the word-line WL is pulled down from VPP to the voltage ofword-line at standby mode) in FIG. 2, the storage capacitor 12 issupplied with the voltage level of the second sustaining voltage sourcewhich is lower than that of the regular signal ZERO (VSS). In oneembodiment, after the turn off of the access transistor 11 or after theRESTORE phase, the second sustaining voltage source (VSS-M2) could bedisconnected from the sense amplifier 20.

Of course, in another embodiment, both the first and the secondsustaining voltage sources could be intentionally coupled to thecapacitor of the DRAM cell during RESTORE phase. Therefore, before theword-line WL is pulled down from VPP to the voltage of word-line atstandby mode, when the signal ONE is originally in the storagecapacitor, a voltage level of 1.2V+0.6V is then stored in the storagecapacitor; or when the signal ZERO is originally in the storagecapacitor, a voltage level of −0.6V is then stored in the storagecapacitor.

Example 2

In order to reduce the leakage current to maintain the stored chargeswithout being leaked through the access transistor, usually designs aremade to let the access transistor have a very high threshold voltage.When the VCCSA is reduced to 0.6 V, the 7 nm or 5 nm process tri-gate orFinFET transistors are adopted for peripheral circuits in DRAM design,and the threshold voltage of these transistor can be scaled accordingly,such as to be reduced to 0.3 V. In this embodiment, the thresholdvoltage of the access transistor could be raised up to 0.5 to 0.6 V onpurpose. So the leakage current from the storage capacitor is sharplyreduced by at least 3˜4 decades (=0.6−0.3˜0.3 V, if the S-factor is 68mV/decade, the leakage can be reduced 4 decades than that of theperipheral Tri-gate devices; if the threshold voltage is raised to 0.5V, then the leakage current should be 2˜3 decades). Raising thethreshold voltage close to the VCCSA or at least more than 80% of the0.6 V is proposed. In the embodiment, the gate-dielectric thickness ofthe access transistor (such as finfet or tri-gate transistor) is stillmaintained as that of the peripheral transistors without increasing itsthickness, and then the high performance merit of using the tri-gatestructure can be maintained.

FIG. 4 illustrates the related signal waveforms of the DRAM cellaccording to another embodiment of this invention. The level of signalONE is 0.6V and the level of signal ZERO is 0 V (GND) in this example.After T2 during the RESTORE phase, a first sustaining voltage source isintentionally coupled to the capacitor of the DRAM cell during RESTOREphase. The voltage level of the first sustaining voltage source ishigher than VCCSA of 0.6V (or the voltage level of signal ONE). Thiscould be done by connecting the first sustaining voltage source(VCCSA+K) to the sense amplifier, wherein K could be a positive number.In one example, K could be in the range of ⅓ VCCSA to ⅔ VCCSA, such as0.3 V or 0.4 V. Therefore, when the signal ONE of 0.6V is originally inthe storage capacitor, during this RESTORE phase, a voltage level of0.6V+0.4V is then supplied to the storage capacitor. That is, before theturn off of the access transistor at T3 (that is, the word-line WL ispulled down from VPP to the voltage of word-line at standby mode) inFIG. 4, the storage capacitor is supplied with the voltage level of thefirst sustaining voltage source which is higher than that of the regularsignal ONE (VCCSA of 0.6V). Therefore, after the word-line WL is pulledup to VPP but before the word-line is pulled down to the standby orinactive mode, a voltage level of 1V is then stored in the storagecapacitor when the signal ONE is originally in the storage capacitor. Inone embodiment, after the RESTORE phase, the bit-line (BL) and bit-linebar (BLB) could be coupled to a bit-line voltage source with a voltagelevel of Vbl, such that the voltage level of the bit-line (BL) and thevoltage level of bit-line bar (BLB) will be reset to Vbl, as shown inFIG. 4.

Of course, as previously mentioned, before the word-line WL is pulleddown from VPP to the voltage of word-line at standby mode, when thesignal ZERO is originally in the storage capacitor, a voltage level ofthe second sustaining voltage source could be then stored in the storagecapacitor, wherein the voltage level of the second sustaining voltagesource is lower than the signal ZERO, such as −0.4V.

Example 3

FIG. 5 shows another embodiment regarding the circuit and functionalblock diagrams for precharge operation. In this embodiment, the VCCSA isset to 0.6V and VSS is set to 0V. In the precharge operation, all theDRAM cells connected to the selected word line(s) in memory section 5(“Sec 5”) will be precharged, and those DRAM cells connected tounselected word lines in other memory sections (such as “Sec4”, “Sec6”,etc.) will be at idle state.

The sense amplifiers 41 and 42 coupled to the DRAM cells which areconnected to the selected word line(s) will be kicked to a thirdsustaining voltage source VHSA (0.6V+K) by the precharge kicker 30, sothat a stronger drain-to-source electrical field can accelerate thesignal restored to the cell. The third sustaining voltage source VHSA ishigher than the VCCSA (0.6V) about few hundred mV, for example 0.3V or0.4V. Moreover, before the selected word line(s) is OFF (that is, theaccess transistors of DRAM cells coupled to the selected word line(s)are OFF), the voltage level of 0.6V+0.4V which is higher than that ofthe original signal ONE could be then stored in the storage capacitors.On the other hand, the sense amplifiers coupled to the DRAM cells whichare connected to the unselected word line(s) will not be kicked up andare still coupled to VCCSA.

FIG. 6 explains the operation of the sense amplifiers for the prechargephase, and the meaning for the symbols used in FIG. 6 is as follows:

VCCSA: Bit Line Sense Amplifiers Voltage

VHSA: the third sustaining voltage source

LSLP: Selected Bit Line Sense Amplifiers High Voltage LSLN: Selected BitLine Sense Amplifiers Low Voltage Vpl: Plate Voltage SN: Storage NodeWL: Word Line BL: Bit Line Vsg1,2: Source to Gate Voltage of P1,P2Vgs3,4: Gate to Source Voltage of N3,N4 Vsg5,6: Source to Gate Voltageof P5,P6 Vgs7,8: Gate to Source Voltage of N7,N8

Referring to FIG. 6, the word-line WL100 is coupled to multiple storagenodes, such as SN1 and SN9. When the signal ONE (0.6V) is stored in thestorage node SN1 which is connected to word-line WL100, after theprecharge command is issued and the word-line WL100 is selected (thatis, the word-line is ON), the LSLP of the sense amplifier is coupled tothe VHSA (1.0V), therefore LSLP is kicked from 0.6V to 1.0V, and LSLNstays in 0V. Thus, transistor P1 of the sense amplifier is OFF andVsg1=0V. Also, transistor P2 of the sense amplifier is ON and Vsg2 iskicked from 0.6V to 1.0V, and 1.0V is fully charged through bit-line BL1to storage node SN1. Meanwhile, transistor N3 of the sense amplifier isON and the Vgs3 is also kicked from 0.6V to 1.0V. Furthermore,transistor N4 of the sense amplifier is OFF and the Vgs4 is 0V.

When the signal ZERO (0V) is stored in the storage node SN9 which isconnected to the word-line WL100, after the precharge command is issuedand the word-line WL100 is selected, the sense amplifier is coupled tothe VHSA (1.0V), therefore LSLP is kicked from 0.6V to 1.0V, and LSLNstays in 0V. Thus, transistor P5 of the sense amplifier is ON and Vsg5is kicked from 0.6V to 1.0V. Also, transistor P6 of the sense amplifieris OFF and Vsg2 is 0V. Meanwhile, transistor N7 of the sense amplifieris OFF and the Vgs7 is 0V. Furthermore, transistor N8 of the senseamplifier is ON and the Vgs8 is kicked from 0.6V to 1.0V, and 0V isrestored strongly through bit-line BL9 to storage node SN9. Of course,as previously mentioned, when the signal ZERO is originally in thestorage capacitor, LSLN could be coupled to another sustaining voltagesource VLSN (0V-K) during the precharge phase. VLSN is lower than thevoltage level of the signal ZERO, and in this case, VLSN could be −0.4V.Then −0.4V is restored strongly through bit-line BL9 to storage node SN9during the precharge phase.

In another embodiment, coupling the first sustaining voltage sourcewhich is higher than the voltage level of signal ONE to the senseamplifier (or DRAM storage cell) could be applied to the refreshoperation or other operation (such as READ/WRITE with auto prechargeoperation), as long as the first sustaining voltage source is coupled tothe sense amplifier (or DRAM storage cell) before the word-line coupledto the DRAM storage cell is OFF. Also coupling the second sustainingvoltage source which is lower than the voltage level of signal ZERO tothe sense amplifier (or DRAM storage cell) could be applied to therefresh operation or other operation, as long as the second sustainingvoltage source is coupled to the sense amplifier (or DRAM storage cell)before the word-line coupled to the DRAM storage cell is OFF.

To summarize the statements mentioned above, this invention disclosesDRAM with sustainable storage architecture. A first sustaining voltagewhich is higher than the voltage level of signal ONE could be restoredor stored to the DRAM storage cell before the access transistor of theDRAM storage cell is OFF (or the word-line coupled to the DRAM storagecell is OFF). Also a second sustaining voltage source which is lowerthan the voltage level of signal ZERO could be restored or stored toDRAM storage cell before the access transistor of the DRAM storage cellis OFF (or the word-line coupled to the DRAM storage cell is OFF). Thus,after the turn off of the access transistor, the storage capacitor cansustain for a longer period compared with conventional DRAM structureeven if there is leakage current through the access transistor.

Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerousmodifications and alterations of the device and method may be made whileretaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the abovedisclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and boundsof the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A DRAM chip, comprising: a first sustainingvoltage generator producing a first voltage level which is higher than avoltage level of a signal ONE utilized in the DRAM chip; and a DRAM cellcomprising an access transistor and a storage capacitor; wherein thefirst voltage level is stored in the DRAM cell before the accesstransistor of the DRAM cell is turned off.
 2. The DRAM chip in claim 1,further comprising a word line coupled to a gate terminal of the accesstransistor, wherein the word-line is selected to turn on the accesstransistor for a first period and a second period after the firstperiod, and the first voltage level of the first sustaining voltagegenerator is stored in the DRAM cell during the second period.
 3. TheDRAM chip in claim 2, wherein the DRAM cell is accessible during thefirst period.
 4. The DRAM chip in claim 2, further comprising a senseamplifier electrically coupled to the DRAM cell through a bit line,wherein the first sustaining voltage generator is connected to the senseamplifier during the second period, and the first voltage level of thefirst sustaining voltage generator is supplied to the DRAM cell throughthe sense amplifier and the bit line.
 5. The DRAM chip in claim 4,further comprising a voltage source connected to the sense amplifierduring the first period and disconnected with the sense amplifier duringthe second period, wherein the voltage level of the voltage source isequal to the voltage level of the signal ONE.
 6. A DRAM chip,comprising: a DRAM cell comprising an access transistor and a capacitor;a sense amplifier electrically coupled to the DRAM cell through a bitline; and a first sustaining voltage generator and/or a secondsustaining voltage generator selectively coupled to the sense amplifier;wherein the first sustaining voltage generator produces a first voltagelevel which is higher than a voltage level of a signal ONE utilized inthe DRAM chip, and the second sustaining voltage generator produces asecond voltage level which is lower than a voltage level of a signalZERO utilized in the DRAM chip.
 7. The DRAM chip in claim 6, wherein thefirst voltage level or the second voltage level is stored in the DRAMcell before the access transistor of the DRAM cell is turned off.
 8. TheDRAM chip in claim 7, further comprising a word-line coupled to a gateterminal of the access transistor; wherein the word-line is selected toturn on the access transistor for a first period and a second periodafter the first period; wherein the first voltage level or the secondvoltage level is stored in the DRAM cell during the second period, andthe DRAM cell is accessible during the first period.
 9. The DRAM chip inclaim 7, wherein the second sustaining voltage generator is connected tothe sense amplifier during the second period, and the second voltagelevel of the second sustaining voltage generator is supplied to the DRAMcell through the sense amplifier and the bit line.
 10. The DRAM chip inclaim 9, further comprising a voltage source connected to the senseamplifier during the first period and disconnected with the senseamplifier during the second period, wherein the voltage level of thevoltage source is equal to the voltage level of the signal ZERO.
 11. ADRAM chip, comprising: a DRAM cell comprising an access transistor and astorage capacitor; and a word line coupled to a gate terminal of theaccess transistor; wherein during the period between the word-line isselected to turn on the access transistor and the word-line isunselected to turn off the access transistor, either a first voltagelevel or a second voltage level is stored in the DRAM cell; wherein thefirst voltage level is higher than a voltage level of a signal ONEutilized in the DRAM chip, and the second voltage level is lower than avoltage level of a signal ZERO utilized in the DRAM chip.
 12. The DRAMchip in claim 11, further comprising a sense amplifier electricallycoupled to the DRAM cell, wherein a first sustaining voltage generatorproducing the first voltage level and a second sustaining voltagegenerator producing the second voltage level are selectively coupled tothe sense amplifier.
 13. A DRAM chip, comprising: a first group of DRAMcells and a second group of DRAM cells, each DRAM cell comprising anaccess transistor and a storage capacitor; a first word-line coupled toa gate terminal of the access transistor of each DRAM cell in the firstgroup of DRAM cells; a second word-line coupled to a gate terminal ofthe access transistor of each DRAM cell in the second group of DRAMcells; a first group of sense amplifiers electrically coupled to thefirst group of DRAM cells; a second group sense amplifiers electricallycoupled to the second group of DRAM cells; and a first sustainingvoltage generator producing the first voltage level and/or a secondsustaining voltage generator producing the second voltage levelselectively coupled to the first group sense amplifiers; wherein thefirst voltage level is higher than a voltage level of a signal ONEutilized in the DRAM chip, and the second voltage level is lower than avoltage level of a signal ZERO utilized in the DRAM chip.
 14. The DRAMchip in claim 13, wherein during the period between the first word-lineis selected to turn on the access transistor of each DRAM cell in thefirst group of DRAM cells and the first word-line is unselected to turnoff the access transistor of each DRAM cell in the first group of DRAMcells, each DRAM cell of the first group of DRAM cells is supplied witheither a first voltage level or a second voltage level.
 15. The DRAMchip in claim 13, wherein when the first word-line is selected, thesecond word-line is unselected and the second group of sense amplifiersare coupled to a first voltage source and a second voltage source, andthe voltage level of the first voltage source is equal to that of thesignal ONE and the voltage level of the second voltage source is equalto that of the signal ZERO.